The Apollo project was a series of space flights dedicated to getting American astronauts on the moon. It was run by NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Apollo was a follo-up to NASA’s Project Mercury, which had put the first American into orbit around the Earth. Apollo officially began in 1961, after President John F. Kennedy declared that the U.S. would put a man on the moon during the 1960s.
To give more background information, the country was involved in the Cold War. In October of 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1—the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth. That marked the beginning of a space race, an informal competition between the superpowers to see who could do more with space technology. The Soviets …show more content…
The Apollo project was way more ambitious, using bigger rockets and more powerful technology. Unfortunately, things got off to a bad start. On January 27, 1967, during a test for the Apollo 1 mission, a fire broke out in the main capsule, killing the three pilots on board. Despite the tragedies, NASA strengthened its safety procedures, continuing the program.
Apollo 7 finally launched three astronauts into space in October of 1968. Then on July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission.
Everybody remembers the astronauts, but NASA’s Mission Control in Houston, Texas was an equally important part of the program. Dozens of engineers and technicians worked 24 hours a day, monitoring everything from the electrical systems to the health of the crew members.
Apollo 13 was scheduled to be another mission to land on the moon. But two days after it launched in March 1970, an explosion cut off crucial oxygen and other supplies to the three-person crew. The astronauts used the lunar module as a kind of lifeboat, while engineers and flight controllers on Earth worked frantically to get them home. Thankfully, everyone made it back to Earth